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The rise of is as much about tech innovation as it is about manufacturing excellence, something that Tesla is trying to improve and serves as a good case study for other green tech businesses.

Tesla is seeing more demand than it could handle partly because its suppliers haven't been able to fill Tesla's orders, said Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, during an earnings call Wednesday. Some suppliers are now scrambling to increase their production while others are finding it difficult to do so promptly, he added.

"Some suppliers thought we wouldn't be around" for long, Musk said, "So they didn't tool up for the production we actually experienced."

The supply problem is a big deal because it means Tesla could generate more revenues otherwise. In fact, securing an adequate supply of auto parts and running enough production lines to meet demand are the unsexy part of the Tesla story. But they are crucial for Tesla's longevity and its responsibility to deliver good returns for its shareholders.

The electric car company already exceeded its shipment goal by delivering 5,150 instead of 4,500 cars during the second quarter. The company began its first delivery to Europe this week and plans to expand its reach in Asia, particularly China, later this year. Tesla is selling Model S the sedan and working on rolling out Model X the SUV starting late next year.

The carmaker also is working on customizing its Model S for regional markets, such as rolling out the right-hand drive for countries such as Japan. For China, Tesla is modifying the back seat for additional comfort because many of its target customers don't drive -- they have chauffeurs, Musk said. All these changes will require additional components and add complexity to managing the supply.

Raising enough money and scaling up manufacturing have been the main stumbling blocks for many green tech companies that created innovative technologies in the lab but ultimately couldn't stay viable. Tesla, by the way, raised over $1 billion during the second quarter by issuing 4.5 million shares of its common stock and $660 million of convertible debt.

Running factories efficiently is big challenge for any company, regardless of whether it's a startup or not. 's famous "Copy Exactly!" strategy deals with the difficulties of developing and replicating cost-effective manufacturing processes in expanding its fleet of factories around the world. Many manufacturers, even those not in the chip business, have tried to adopt Intel's strategy. MiaSole, a Silicon Valley solar startup, even enlisted Intel's help. Many solar companies also have hired veterans from the chip industry to help them figure out how to mass produce their technologies.

Some green tech startups have opted not to build their own production lines to avoid the manufacturing headache. Instead, they hire manufacturers to make the products. While this strategy is cheaper -- and many venture capitalists have come to prefer this option after seeing so many of their solar and other green tech companies go under in recent years -- it has its downside. Contract manufacturing could make it harder for a startup to fine-tune and improve the production process to come up with the product that meets its performance and quality goals.

Tesla overcame some of the initial hurdles of mass producing the Model S last year, after missing its initial production goal for 2012. The company said it improved the production rate by 25% during the second quarter of this year. It aims to sell the Model S at a rate of 40,000 per year "by late 2014." Its current annual rate is 20,000 in North America. Fixing that component supply problem will allow the company to meet if not exceed its sales goal.